Now That Gazprom Is Ours (Russia)

There used to be a popular joke about a scientist who, after years of research, finally succeeds in breeding an elephant that fits in the palm of your hand. “We finally did it!” he exclaims to his colleague. “Now if I could only remember what we needed a miniature elephant for.

Last Friday, the government announced that it had acquired a controlling stake in Russia’s largest company, the natural gas monopoly Gazprom. Skeptics in some quarters maintain that the deal is far from complete. But let’s assume that on June 23, 2005, the citizens of Russia really did take ownership of a controlling stake in Gazprom. What are we going to do with it?